No Rest For The Wicked, No Peace For The Pure
by Machina Super Monstrum
Summary: Since the Synthesis, galactic life has continued in a relative Golden Age, and the man who brought it about supposedly allowed his eternal rest. But with that, a threat forgotten by the Reapers, created in the same anvils for the other half of the cycle, unfortunately emerge. It seems a good man's work is never quite done...
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1: We need him back.

 **A/N: Inspired heavily by a long unfinished story from 2012 called 'The Last Chance' by eriskbo. I fell in love with that story back when it was still updating and then it stopped but I always held hope that it would update out of the blue and would make my month all the brighter. Unfortunately it was not to be it seems. But now, I choose to write a similarly veined story and hope that I can carry on the spirit of the story even if it itself has been lost to time. Onwards and upwards my dear readers.**

"Ma'am, Collective Entity 37 is approaching docking position and asking permission to send down their representative."

"37? What does Harbinger want in this sector?"

"I'm not sure, Matriarch, but it has been quite insistent."

Liara swiveles in her large, cushy chair, turning away from her massive array of screen and looking towards her Salarian assistant. "It must be something severe for it to seek me out." The aged Asari rolls the thought back forth before deciding, "Alright, allow the representative access but double counter-intrusion protocols and prepare electronic lockdown suite."

"Aye ma'am, though if I may say, this seems rather extreme."

She narrows her eyes at the Salarian. "Old grudges die hard, especially when you're a long lived race like I am. Now go, I'm sure Harbinger is practically knocking at our door."

"Of course Matriarch." The assistant bows lightly and scurries off to let the Reaper's conduit into her sanctum, the lair of the Shadow Broker.

"This had better be good..."

* * *

Roughly 20 minutes later, the door opens once again and her assistant clears his throat loudly, "Ma'am, I have returned."

With a wave, the screens all go black and her chair spins around.

Standing behind the small Salarian is a tall avian, easily over 2 meters high even with its bent, digi-grade knees, covered in jet black feathers with a tinge of baby blue along their edge, his raptor like eyes focused squarely upon her, his wings wrapped around his arms and torso, and the long talons that make up its feet clicking loudly on the hard metal floor.

"A Raloi... I'm not surprised."

"Greetings, Liara T'Soni. I am Ta'Kirask, representative of Collective Entit-"

"Why are you here Harbinger?"

The feathers atop his head ruffle a little but settle rather quickly as his eyes take on a dark tint. "T'Soni, must you still carry old grudges? We have not gone by that name since The Synthesis."

Her eyes narrow at the towering avian, "What you intended to do is not so easily forgotten or forgiven."

The Raloi representative sighs, a very human motion and a continuing leftover from the day long ago where Shepard sacrificed himself in the Crucible to end the Reaper War. "We have tread this ground too many times and for far too long. We did not come here to rehash the past again. We came with a reason. There is a new issue that is arising." The Raloi shakes his head, his eyes clearing as a polite smile crosses his thin beak. "I shall handle this, Collective. I believe a more organic touch is necessary."

The Raloi, now back in control of his senses, refocuses his attention on the scowling Asari. "T'Soni, the Collective Entities have brought forward a worrying incident on the horizon. One they unfortunately have known about for quite some time."

"Then why wasn't it brought up earlier."

"They had... forgotten, no, that's the wrong term. They had simply stopped thinking of it as it always occurred after they were through with the cycle and had returned to dark space."

Liara pinches the bridge of her nose, sighing, "Continue," her other hand flickering with the blue haze of biotics in frustration.

"They do not have a name but the simplest way to describe them would be a... cleanup crew. A cleanup crew designed to come through and wipe out most traces of the previous cycle."

"What?!"

"The Prothean empire spanned countless thousands of worlds, the Inu'sanon before them tens of thousands, and yet ruins could only be found on a few choice worlds that were likely to be colonized or investigated. They come through scouring some worlds, decimating others, leaving only just enough for the next cycle to follow the track that was laid out for them."

"Well can't you call them off?!"

The representative shakes his pointed head, "No. They are an autonomous secondary system established at the beginning of the search for the solution."

"When are they arriving?" Liara could feel the blood vessels in her head throbbing now, a migraine quickly forming.

"Current calculations put them at approximately 17 standard Earth years."

Her face falls to a neutral frown with a long exhale, hundreds of years of data flow and processing forcing her to shut away her emotions until the situation is handled. "That is not much time at all. With your statement, we may be able to convince the council to muster all of our forces. They shouldn't make the same mistake they did last time." She pulls up her omnitool, tapping at it. "What is the force's size, it must be at least your fleet's size given its job."

"The fleet's numbers at creation were 14,537, but they were left with a self replication capability should it be deemed necessary by the central controller entity. Each ship was approximately the size of the 'Soveriegn class' Collective Entities."

Liara stops her typing, her eyes wide as she looks up. "Over fourteen thousand dreadnoughts... the Reaper fleet was only a few hundred..." she collapses further into her chair. "I don't think we can do this, even with Reaper assistance and the standing fleets... it's... it's just not possible."

"The one called Shepard was capable of things that were deemed impossible. His assistance might help."

"Yes, he **was.** " Her emphasis falls harshly on the word. "Up until he died fighting all of you... again." Her words drip with bitterness and long suppressed anger.

"Yes. But the Collective Entities have a plan and need your help and resources for it."

She sighs again, screwing her emotions down, back under control. "Speak."

"The Shepard was decompiled and dispersed with the Crucible's power, integrated into all sapient beings in the galaxy, allowing for the development of the harmonious understanding that now exists between organics and synthetics. The plan is simple," Ta'Kirask unfurls his wings exposing the 2 pairs of arms folded across his chest, something akin to a smile crossing his beak, "We recompile The Shepard."

"That's... not possible... but they said that the first time around too." She sits up a little straighter. "Even if we could, we'd need not only Geth Consensus level processing speed, for I can only guess how long, along with the necessary facilities to grow a new body, incredibly heavily regulated in council space I might add, add onto that, most if not all the 'bytes of Shepard', so to speak, have been corrupted as successive generations have bred and changed. We would need several billion fresh, unchanged bytes to even attempt this."

The smile on the beaked face only grows. "You have the Collective Entities, Ms. T'soni, they have not been idle since realizing this coming threat. They themselves are billions upon billions of beings each, while some bits have been damaged, enough have been saved and replicated that they can recompile the Shepard. As to the cloned body, that was why we needed you. While their organic growth capabilities are fully able for the task, it is not precise enough to maintain The Shepard's original mind as well as his body. Alongside that, they do not wish to get in trouble with the Council, but it is well known that The Shadow Broker regularly deals in the not quite legal."

Liara tries to answer but honestly, they are right, for once. Tapping a small button on her console, she speaks, "Keraka, prepare me a fast, mobile hub ship and a pot of Eyat tea. I will be leaving soon."

"Of course Matriarch. 20 minutes." The intercom clicks off without further talk, an efficiency long trained into her assistants.

"Leave. I have calls to make."

"Of course, Matriarch T'Soni." The avian being bows lightly before her, his feathers flaring out, glinting in the low light before folding back around him as he turns on his taloned heels and clicking out of the room and back to the docked Reaper.

A few seconds tick by before the same Salarian trots in holding a steaming porcelain pot with a matching cup. "Your tea, Matriarch."

"Thank you Keraka. Please put plan Alpha-Sekran 6 into place for the duration of my journey. And get conversions Norma 3 underway."

"Of course Matriarch."

"You are dismissed."

The Salarian scurries off as Liara turns back to her massive array, pulling up a once much longer list now reduced to only a few names, labeled 'Surviving Crew'. "Begin message..."

* * *

The sterile white walls shone with the reflected lights both inlaid in the floor and ceiling, the myriad of wall-mounted machines humming, clicking, and beeping away as they begun to spool up for their long task. Music poured from speakers around the room, filling it with long, harmonious melodies, like water over smooth stone.

Dr. Liara T'soni and her companion, Edi Moreau, looked upon the large room, machines along each walls, tubes, wires and lights all safely hidden from view, leaving only the long silver bullet like tube raised from the floor, already full of a translucent pink substance with a small lump, no bigger than a golf ball floating amidst it, drifting to some unseen forces within.

Liara and her companion flowed with her music, its gentler tones lost to the louder orchestra and yet each adding to the overall whole. Her fingers dance from keyboard to keyboard, as her friend did the same on the other side.

The last few grand notes of the song fade as the two return to the center, staring down at the tube. "Recompilation synthesis complete. His genomic data is re-established and implanted. Estimated time until finalized gestation and decanting: 7 years."

"Hmmm... that's longer than I'd hoped."

"While the Reapers did have much of his genome available, there is still a 0.004% aspect missing due to either corruption or loss. It will likely have a few undesirable effects on Shepard, what they are remain to be seen however. There is also a high likelihood of error during the regrowth."

"One of us would need to stay here and monitor him to correct them as they occur."

"I know of your duties Liara. Do not worry, I shall stay here. It's not like I have anything better to do with my life." A small, sad smile crosses her silvery face.

Liara visage contorts to a look of shocked horror. "N-no, I wouldn't ask you to d-" surprise takes its place, "600 years and you still get me..."

"I spent quite a lot of them learning humor."

"Paid off, it seems." Concern now resides on her round face. "Are you certain, EDI?"

"Quite, there is an extranet connection I can interact with from here. I do not think I will grow bored, and some time to think will be nice."

"Alright."

"Please rest, Liara, you have been up for 3 standard Earth days."

"Y-you're right." She stares down at the tank, the little blob of cells drifting about to predetermined currents. "If everything still checks out after this rest, I shall depart."

The synthetic woman nods, the small smile still on her face. "Of course Liara. Now, go rest."

The tired asari turns around, leaving the lab, the new home of Shepard and EDI for the next seven years...

* * *

Warm... calm... flowing... comfortable...

Like a womb, a womb of white, a void of rest.

Shepard's consciousness dimly returns for the briefest of moments to form those thoughts.

Thoughts, something that hasn't been there for some time, something that was rapidly gaining strength and coherence.

Thoughts that are getting more and more... cold, hard, and rigid.

* * *

A loud hiss escapes the long metal pod as sickly pink fluid escapes from its interior, flowing into drainage channels spread throughout it.

A deep gasp followed by a continuous wet cough brings Leon Shepard back to reality and the realm of the living. His body convulses as it expels the sweet tasting pink goo from both his stomach and lungs, followed by more wet coughs.

"Shit..." is all he can get out before flopping back into the tube, as he gulped down air, finally opening his eyes and taking a look around at the few beings staring at his nude form. "Crap... I just got brought back from the dead again, didn't I?" His tone dry despite the wetness in and on his body.

His vision clears up enough to make out the form of Liara, her blue skin drawing his eyes first. "Yes, unfortunately. Seems you aren't allowed your eternal rest with the Goddess yet, Shepard."

His head hits the back of the tube with a loud thunk. "Damn. Well... how long did it take me to come back this time? 2, 3 more years?"

As Liara shook her head, his vision focuses a bit more, clarity returning, more clarity than he was used to, revealing who was around him or at least who he thought they were, 2 Krogan and a curvaceous metal form, so Wrex, Grunt and EDI... odd combo, but then so was his whole crew.

A low rumbling laugh comes from the much worse for wear looking Wrex. "Not quite Shepard."

"What? So 5 years or so? That's not so bad." Another shake of the head.

"10 years?" Again; a shake. "20 years?" Worry started creeping into his tone.

"No Shepard."

"Well then how bloody long was I out?!"

EDI, still the one to answer a question pointedly, "You were dead for 624.9 years Shepard."

"WHAAAAATT!?"

 **A/N: Honestly, this story took a lot longer than anticipated to finally sit down and crank out this chapter, I blame Maxaro, my Beta, for constantly distracting me with talk of alien anatomical accuracy and dresses that would look sexy on a Hive Fleet Kraken Warrior. We spent waaay too long discussing that but I stick by my forest green with some dark blue trimming to make it pop against its carapace. May the night see you safe and dawn greet you kindly dear readers.**

 **E/N: I disagree with Machina; sexy Tyranid talks can never go on for too long!**


	2. Chapter 2

Ch. 2: History Lessons

 **A/N: Not much to report this go round, other than I hope the snark of this Shepard was well received as I have more planned amidst it all.**

 **A/N: For those it may concern: Boom, Update Wave Part 4**

"625 years..." the goo still drenching Shepard rubbed his already throbbing forehead, "Six hundred and twenty five bloody years!" He pulls himself shakily up, knuckles white as they grip the edge of the silver tube. "Why in the hell would you bri-, no, no, let me guess. Giant galactic life ending threat?"

Liara can only sheepishly nod.

"Seen as an impossible task?"

Another nod.

"Running low on time?"

A slower nod.

"Need to assemble a crew with limited resources and no help from the galactic community at large?"

"Well actually..."

"Oh?" His eyes brighten, sitting up a little straighter.

"The support from the Council and my resources are all yours but…" her voice falters a little as her fingers tangle behind her back. "They still aren't enough on their own, so we need you to pull a... well, a miracle. Again."

"Shit..." his body sags once again. "Help me up. I don't want all my bad news to come while in the nude and in a tube. Might as well be clean and comfy for this." He holds a hand out, which is quickly grasped by a much older looking Grunt.

With the Krogan's assistance, Shepard pulls himself from the tube, his legs wobbly beneath him as the still naked man stretched, popping new joints all over his pristine body. "Look at you Grunt, all grown up."

The younger Krogan smile widens, rows of sharp teeth glinting in the fluorescent light. "With more than a few scars to show off for it Shepard." His deep, throaty laugh rumbles forth.

A long, green towel slides from a small compartment on the side of the tube, Shepard taking it with a small sigh, wiping off the viscous fluid and taking a set of proffered clothing from the waiting EDI. "I think we need to sit down and you need to brief me."

* * *

The meeting room was a fairly barren affair, as such rooms typically were, it seemed that not even 625 years had changed that fact. The room's only major defining feature was the large holographic display, a long green ovoid hovering gently above it. It only had a few chairs, several of them clearly designed to handle the pair of Krogans' bulk, though two of the chairs remained empty as everyone took their respective seats.

"Alright, obviously we're going to have to skip most of the whole 'bringing me up to speed' spiel and just stick to the really important bits for now. Namely, why I was brought back and what we can do to make sure everyone doesn't die... again."

"I believe we may be of assistance in that respect." A soft, gravelly female voice drags the Commander's attention from his old companions, leaving him staring at an odd pair of newcomers.

"Well you're new..." the pair in question were a female Turian, her lime green facial paint swirled in intricate patterns across her face, her mandibles set into a smile, while her companion, large, jet black wings wrapped once again around his body is Ta'kirask, who bobs his head forward, aimed downward in a greeting.

"Greetings Commander. I am Ta'kirask, representative of Collective Entity 1. A pleasure to finally meet you."

The Turian takes a small bow in kind, "And I am Veera Kurus, representative of Collective Entity 20013, I hope that our association will be a beneficial and protective one."

"Few questions... first, what are you?" Shepard asks as he points at the, to him, foreign life form, "I don't recognize your species." He holds up a hand as he ticks off fingers, "Second, what's a Collective Entity? Are you two some sort of organic Geth platform, or no, perhaps something to do with those..." he rubs his temples in thought, trying to dredge the memories up from the abyss. "Those virtual aliens that came through back before the Reapers showed up en masse? Third, there is no third." That one got a little chuckle from his old teammates while getting confused looks from the two newcomers. "Fourth, are you part of the Council races?"

A vibrant chirping spills forth from the enormous bird alien. "Straight to the point. The records of you were indeed accurate." His eyes glaze over for the briefest of moments, "No. I believe that I should tell rather than you." The avian eyes flicker back, once again making contact. "I can answer your first and fourth question with ease. I am a Raloi, an avian species that calls Turvess its home planet. My race was briefly a part of the galaxy at large before the Col-Reapers arrived, at which point we retreated back to Turvess and took down all indications we were a space faring species in hopes that we would be ignored. We reintegrated roughly 2 years after the end of The War and have since become well integrated to the galaxy at large." He bows once again. "We are a relatively common sight these days. But, as to your second question... tell me, Shepard, how much do you remember of your last few moments?"

"They're… blurry but I remember getting to the Catalyst, I was dieing, I remember that. Didn't have much left in my body, pretty sure at least half my bones were broken and I was probably bleeding internally. Every breath was like glass being raked across the hamburger of my lungs. The Catalyst explained a lot of things that were bullshit but the big thing was that I had the power to end it all. Gave me some choices, control, destroy or... synthesis I think was what he said. I seriously considered telling him to shove it but one look at the fight told me that that would end very badly for us." Shepard rubs his temples again as he recalls his very last moments. "I felt myself in those final throes of death so I had to make a snap decision. Control wasn't an option, not after I'd seen what had happened to The Illusive Man. I couldn't take destruction, I had just given the Geth their independence as a whole. I felt my body failing as I ran towards the big beam. If it was a betrayal, it wouldn't matter what I chose, but if it was true, the Synthesis seemed the best option at the time. It... It didn't hurt when I hit the beam, it just felt… warm for what felt like seconds and then I woke up from the dead... again."

"That is fairly accurate."

"I sense I'm not going to like why you asked me to recount that."

"The Collective Entities are the Reapers."

The Commander leans back into his chair, a long sigh escaping his lips. "Of course you are." His head lolls back, rolling over the edge of headrest. "Safe to assume you're Harbinger then?"

"I am its organic representative yes. Though it would prefer to not be called by that name. It is able to experience all that I do and take control as necessary. Do not worry though, I am in almost no way indoctrinated as you knew it. I am my own being in here, I just happen to share it with another."

"Almost?" His eyes return to the avian being still standing across the conference room. "Keep in mind, before your answer that, to me, its only been a few hours since I was fighting the Reapers tooth and nail, dieing to stop them."

"I understand. Certain... aspects of what you knew as 'indoctrination' are still key to linking me as the representative of a Collective Entity. But, as long as I allow control to be taken rather than forced, as well as regular injections of a the repair serum given to all representatives, I shall not suffer any mental deterioration until my body begins to fail from old age in another 150-200 standard Earth years."

Shepard sits up straight, eyes as focused as his mind, the engineer in him already running through and discarding a massive array of thoughts and possibilities. "As much as I want to probe deeper into several things you've just said, I feel that we may have gotten a bit off track from my original line of thought. You said that you had information regarding why I was brought and what can be done to stop it?"

"Very much so. They are the other half of the Collective Entities after all."

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Shepard motions to the two empty chairs, "Sit, might as well be comfortable for what is no doubt to going to be a loooong briefing."

Liara taps at a few keys above her wrist, "I shall have some tea brewed up. White Needle, right, Shepard?" She gets a nod of affirmative as the Raloi and his Turian companion interface with the floating holo in the midst of the table, preparing packets of information.

* * *

After the tea arrived, everyone settled into their chairs, trying to get as comfortable as possible while the two representatives finished setting up the information.

"Shall we begin Shepard?" The Turian, Veera, breaks the silence, meeting the Commander's bright green eyes with her own electric blue.

"Please." Shepard says, taking a deep sip from his still warm tea. The lights in the room dim as the Turian begins speaking.

"As you well remember, the Collective Entities were designed by the Catalyst as a solution to the problem of organic extinction after developing synthetic life which inevitably surpassed their creators.

A way of encapsulating all that a species is and was into a single, perfect form. A nation as one. A solution that performed admirably for 20014 cycles before the chain was broken by you, Shepard. By your sacrifice to infuse Synthesis upon all life in the galaxy." The Turian pauses to bring up a holo of several strands of DNA, swirling with ephemeral wisps of vibrant green. "But for the solution to continue as it had in the beginning, all variables had to be accounted for."

Her Raloi companion swipes away the DNA, replacing it with a map of the galaxy that wouldn't have been out of place in the CIC of the old SR2 and taking over the narration. "New life needed to be guided so that it would not deviate far enough to be unsavable. The original cycles were far more time consuming, both due to the low numbers of Collective Entities and the random dispersal of species throughout the galaxy at large. Then, in the 48th cycle, a variable was solved." A wave of one of his lower hands makes the map light up with pinpricks of light in places Shepard recognizes as being several major and minor Mass Relay locations, though several distinct ones were missing along with the Citadel. "A way to direct the development, the way of least resistance methodology proved to be a valuable aspect to rely on. The 49th cycle took a fraction of time comparatively."

Veera retakes the flow of speech, "In the 53rd cycle, the Citadel was constructed. Its purpose clear, a focal point linked to all other nodes. The time was cut down again." She waves at the holo again, changing it to a depiction of a battlefield, frozen in the second. Several mushrooming explosions detonated in the background, whipping the already blackened ground into a crystalline whirlwind, as the shadow of a Destroyer dimmed a large section of the image, but the most striking feature was a being, forefront in the image, large at over 3 meters tall, a dim purple to its reptilian skin, with plating covering most of its face and its catlike eyes, and, most importantly, clad in a streamlined mechanized suit bristling with weapons and surrounded by several layers of barriers, one the light blue of biotics, another the static like color of a normal shield, and, on the innermost, a swirling lavender, 3 of its 8 arms raised and pointed at various targets, likely barking orders to the swarm of smaller blue furred beings at the edge of the image.

"The Z'rostk'ii. Primary race of the 204th cycle. They and the secondary races of the Z'rostk'ii Empire proved to be a very difficult harvest, destroying more than 28 Primary Collective Entites and 79 Secondaries. The reason for this was discovered on the far end of their harvest." Another swipe and another holo. This time of an enormous blue, pulsing monolith with several cables easily as thick a human torso trailing from it. "At the time, the natural decays of time were perceived as enough for removing most but not all of the previous cycle's achievements and structures. But, there was an... I believe an apt human phrase would be 'compound interest'. Each cycle hid away or preserved as much knowledge and technology as they could when it was realized that their harvest was unavoidable. As more cycles past, these caches became used and replaced, growing each time as another weakness or progression was uncovered with the help of the previous. The Z'rostk'ii were the ones to fully utilize it, bringing several billions years of advancement against them, nearly succeeding before an exploit was found to their psionic capabilities, allowing for indoctrination and their eventual downfall." The Turian finishes with a small wave, letting out the remainder of her breath and tilting her head to her companion to continue.

Shepard, who had so far stayed silent, raises a hand, beckoning them to pause before he leans forward in his chair, elbows resting on his legs and hands intertwining under his chin, deep in thought. Taking a deep breath, he closes his eyes for a moment before blowing it out his nose, his mind tearing through all the data

"Do you require something Shepard?"

"No. I have many questions but I have no doubt that this is far from over and those questions would needlessly derail everything. I just... needed a minute to process." He sits up, leaning back in the mildly comfortable chair, waving a hand. "Please continue, but any specifics; data, blueprints, maps, etc, please hold those back for now. I will review them in my own time. For now, treat this as you have been; a history lesson."

Ta'kirask chirps at his statement, his lower arms folding over his chest. "Very well then, that shall significantly shorten this then." A swipe with one of his upper arms and the battlefield image shifts again, this time displaying a ruined husk of a world, large swathes covered in the light of enormous fires. "After the end of the 204th cycle, the Catalyst devised a solution to this newest variable. Orbital bombardment would not have been thorough enough and planetary sweeping was deemed far too time consuming given the numbers of the Collective Entities at the time. So, numbers were created." Another swipe and the image expands, showing off a grotesque hulk floating in space, a long, fleshy cone like structure, its exterior the color and texture of coagulated blood.

"They were never truly given a name but for our purposes we shall call the CC, or Cleanup Crew. Bio-drones easily created from the refuse of harvests, grown and repaired by solar winds and background radiation. Their job was to sweep the galaxy at large after each cycle, clearing many worlds, decimating others to little but windswept ruins, while leaving a small fraction untouched for the ravages of time so that they might guide the next cycle. This was done with quadrillions of worker drones, all crafted from similar materials and designed for a specific job before returning and being recycled themselves." The image changes without a swipe this time, showing a large sphere of the same substance, easily the size of Luna, above a planet that may once have been habitable but now looked like a burnt husk. "A central controller was also constructed. A place to house both the CC as well as store, replicate, and seed the large quantity of natural flora and fauna lost during each cycle as well as craft further units as deemed necessary by the brain matrix located within it."

Veera retakes the explanation. "They were set to enter the galaxy upon detecting the Collective Entities returning to dark space or, should the solution fail, to act as an, ehem, 'Nuclear Option' and scour the galaxy of all life, storing it within itself, before departing for the Andromeda galaxy. As to why, only the Catalyst was aware and it was destroyed during Synthesis. Unfortunately they were designed as an autonomous swarm, without external communication capabilities, so the Collective Entities are unable to send them some sort of stop signal."

With a snap, the lights return to normal and the holo blinks out of existence. "And that is the extent of them. Their numbers at creation were 14,537 Dreadnought level ships and the main swarm will be entering the galactic periphery in roughly 10 earth years with tendrils entering within the next 6 months." The two representatives direct their gazes straight at Shepard, his face a perfect mask of neutrality before he speaks, his tone slow and purposeful.

"And I am supposed to stop them?"

"It is assumed you would have help, but yes, you are considered the main factor to a solution."

His face stays neutral, voice maintaining a clearly forced levelness. "Okay. What help am I getting?"

"Full support and use of the Collective Entities' fleet. They have taken to liking Synthesis life."

Liara pipes up behind him, "The Council will surely support you too, especially with the Reapers vouching. My own network will be at your disposal as well of course. I have grown it quite far over the last 600 years."

Wrex rumbles from across the table, "And the Krogan Union will gladly stand by your side, even if the boy and I have to bash a few heads together on our side."

Setting a hand on his shoulder, Liara spins Shepard around, looking into his eyes. "We are here to help you. I promise on my life that this will be the last time if I have anything to say about it. And, if you can't, at least we'll all go out together..."

"Okay." He says as he sags in his chair, the enormous burden already weighing down on him. "Do you also have my standard start up?" A weak chuckle passes his lips as a tired smile cracks his face.

Liara's smile is far broader and much more genuine. "As a matter of fact I do." She stands from the chair, offering a hand down to the human. "Come, let me show you the Normandy SR3..." Shepard's own smile grows stronger as he takes her proffered hand, hauling himself out of the chair and into the trials ahead.

 **A/N: Feel really good about this chapter, excited to continue this story and I hope you all enjoy it. Before its no doubt shouted at me, yes, the CC are based off of things like the Tyranids but hopefully I can keep them as _just_ inspiration and they will become their own horror in time. May the night see you safe and dawn greet you kindly dear readers.**

 **E/N: I will never let Machina escape the grasp of the Great devourer... _glory to the Hivemind..._**


End file.
